Treatmenet of under weight
By
ALyaa Ghanema
I-MD ,ND ,PHD in nutrition
Treatment of underweight
1) INTRODUCTION
Although most of the population wants to lose weight, there are also many people with the opposite problem, that are too thin. This is a concern, because being underweight can be just as bad for your health as obesity. Additionally, many people who are not clinically
underweight still want to gain muscle. Whether you are clinically underweight or just struggling to gain muscle weight, the main principles are the same.
2) WHAT DOES “UNDER WEIGHT” REALLY MEAN?
Being underweight is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) below 18.5. It is the minimum body mass necessary to maintain optimal health.
Conversely, a BMI of over 25 is considered overweight and over 30 is considered obese.
However, keep in mind that there are a lot of issues with the BMI scale, which does not take into consideration the relationship between weight and height. It doesn't take muscle mass into account. Some people are naturally very thin, but still healthy. Being underweight on this scale doesnot necessarily mean that you have a health problem. Being underweight is about 2-3 times more common in girls and women.
In the United States, 1% of men and 2.4% of women aged 20 and over are underweight.
3) WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF
WEIGHT DEFICIENCY ON HEALTH?
Obesity is currently one of the biggest health problems in the world. However, being underweight can be just as bad for your health as obesity.
According to one study, being underweight was associated with a 140% increase in the risk of early death in men, and 100% in women.
In this study, obesity was "only" associated with a 50% increased risk of early death, indicating that being underweight can be even worse for your health. Another study found an increased risk of early death in underweight men, but not women. This indicates that
being underweight can be worse for men.
Being underweight can also impair immune function, increase your risk for infections, lead to osteoporosis and fractures, and cause problems fertility.
People who are underweight are also much more likely to experience sarcopenia (age- related muscle wasting), and may be at higher risk for dementia.
4) THE CAUSES OF WEIGHT INSUFFICIENCY
There are several medical conditions that can cause unhealthy weight loss.
Here Are a few:
Eating disorders: This includes anorexia nervosa,
Thyroid Problems: Having an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) can boost metabolism and cause unhealthy weight loss.
Celiac disease: The most serious form of gluten intolerance.
Most People with celiac disease do not know they have
Diabetes: Uncontrolled diabetes (mainly type 1) can lead to significant weight loss.
Cancer: Cancerous tumors often burn large amounts of calories and can cause someone to lose a lot of weight.
Infections: Some infections can cause someone to become severely underweight. This includes parasites, tuberculosis and HIV / AIDS.
If a person is underweight then you may need to see a doctor to rule out a serious medical complication. This is especially important if you 've recently started losing large amounts of weight without an explanation.
5) HOW TO GAIN WEIGHT SAFE
If you want to gain weight, it is very important to do it right. Dumping on donuts can help you gain weight, but it can destroy your health at the same time. If you are underweight then you want to gain amount balance of muscle mass and subcutaneous fat, not a bunch of unhealthy
belly fat.
There are many people of normal weight who suffer from type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and other health problems often associated with obesity.
Hence, it is absolutely essential that you always eat healthy foods and live a healthy lifestyle. In fact, there are several effective ways to gain weight fast, without ruining your health at the same time including:
5-1) Eat more calories than your body burns
The most important thing you can do for gaining weight is eating more calories than your body needs. A calorie surplus is necessary.
Without it, you will not gain weight.
You need to gain weight slowly and steadily, aim for 300-500 calories more than what you burn each day.
To gain weight fast, you should aim for something like 700-1000 calories above your maintenance level.
Keep in mind that calorie calculators only provide estimates. Your needs can vary by several hundred calories per day. We don't need to count calories for the rest of our lives, but it helps
to do it for the first few days / weeks to get a feel for how many calories we should eat.
5-2) Eat plenty of protein
The single most important nutrient for healthy weight gain is protein.
Muscle is made from protein, and without it most of those extra calories
can end up in body fat.
Studies show that during times of overeating, a high diet protein causes a lot of extra calories to be gained which will be turned into muscle.
However, keep in mind that protein is a double-edged sword. It is also very satiating so it can reduce your hunger and appetite significantly. This can make it harder to get enough
calories.
If you are trying to gain weight, aim for 1.5 - 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. You can even go higher than that if your intake calories very high.
Foods rich in protein include meats, fish, eggs,many dairy products, legumes, nuts, and others.supplements Protein Like whey protein can also be helpful.
For this reason, the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDI) of protein is 50 grams per day. (In reality, they should vary depending on your weight, gender, and your level of physical activity). However, some scientists believe that many people should eat much more than this amount.
High protein intake can help with weight loss, increase muscle mass, and improve health, to name a few examples.
Here are 14 easy ways to increase your protein intake:
1) Eat your protein first
When eating a meal, eat the protein source first, and especially before you eat starches. Protein increases the production of PYY, a gut hormone that makes you feel full and satisfied.
In addition to this, consuming a lot of protein lowers the levels of the “hunger hormone” ghrelin and increases your metabolism after eating and while you sleep.
(Ghrelin is a digestive hormone that stimulates the appetite: its level is high before meals and decreases as the stomach fills. It is considered to be the antagonist of leptin, a hormone produced by adipocytes, which induces satiety as blood levels rise.)
Also, eating protein first can help prevent blood sugar and insulin from spiking too much after a meal.
In a short study, people with type 2 diabetes were served the same meals on different days. Their blood sugar and insulin much less increased why they ate protein and vegetables before high-foods
carbohydrate, than when they ate their meals in reverse order. Bottom Line:
Eating protein first with meals can help you feel full and prevent your blood sugar and insulin levels from spiking too much.
2) Snack Yourself with Cheese Snacks
are a good way to incorporate more protein into your diet, as long as you choose the right ones. Many popular snacks are very low in protein, such as crisps, pretzels and crackers.
For example, a 28 gram (1 ounce) serving of tortilla chips contains 137 calories but only 2 grams of protein.
Conversely, the same amount of cheddar cheese contains 7 grams of protein, with 20 calories less and 4 times the calcium.
Plus, cheese doesn't seem to raise cholesterol levels that much, even in people with high cholesterol. In fact, cheese might even be beneficial for heart health.
3) Replace Cereal With Eggs
Many breakfast foods are low in protein, which includes toast, bagels and cereal. Even though oatmeal contains more protein than most grains, it only provides about 6 grams for a normal serving of a glass. On the other hand, three large eggs provide 19 grams of good quality protein, along with important nutrients like selenium and choline. Plus, several studies have shown that eating eggs for breakfast reduces appetite and leaves you full for several hours, so you end
up eating fewer calories later in the day.
Eating whole eggs can also change the size and shape of your LDL,particles ("bad") cholesterol, which may lower your risk of disease heart.
4) Add flaked almonds to your meals
Almonds are incredibly healthy. They're high in magnesium, fiber, and heart-healthy mon-saturated fat, but low in digestible carbohydrates.
Almonds also contain 6 grams of protein per 28 gram serving (1 ounce), making them a better source of protein than most dried fruits.
And although one serving of almonds contains around 167 calories, studies have shown that your body actually only absorbs 129 of those calories because some of the fat is not digested. So sprinkle a few tablespoons of slivered almonds on top of yogurt, cottage cheese, salads, or oatmeal to increase your protein intake and add flavor and crunch. But that's not
Almonds are very rich in lipids, in particular in monounsaturated fatty acids, insoluble fibers, but also in vitamins E (antioxidant), B2 and B3. The concentrations of phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, calcium, iron and zinc are also important.
The recommended serving is 4 or 5 almonds, or a small handful, as it is a very energetic tree nut. Almond, like all oilseeds, has many health benefits, regularly confirmed by scientific studies.
5-3) Eat lots of carbohydrates and fat, and eat at least 3 times a day
Many people try to restrict either carbohydrates or fat when trying to lose weight. It is a bad idea if your goal is to gain weight because it will be more difficult to get enough calories.
Eat plenty of foods that are high in carbohydrates and high in fat if gain weight is a priority for you. It's best to eat plenty of protein, fat, and carbohydrates with each meal. It is also a bad idea, in this case, to do intermittent fasting. It is helpful for weight loss and health improvement, but it can be much more difficult to eat enough calories to gain weight.
5-4) Eat lots of high calorie foods and use sauces,spices and condiments
Again, it is very important to eat single ingredient foods mostly whole. The problem is, these foods tend to be more filling than processed junk food, making it harder to get enough calories.
Using lots of spices, sauces, and condiments can help. The your food tastier, the easier it is to eat large amounts of it.
Try to focus on high energy foods as much as possible. These are foods that contain a lot of calories for their weight.
Here are some high energy foods that are great for gaining weight:
Nuts: Almonds, walnuts, macadamia nuts, peanuts, etc.
Dried fruits: raisins, dates, prunes and others.
High-fat dairy products: Whole milk, fullyogurt
fat, cheese, cream.
Fats and oils: extra virgin olive oil and avocado oil.
Grains: Whole grains like oats and brown rice.
Meat: chicken, beef, pork, lamb, etc. Choose fatter cuts.
Tubers: potatoes, sweet potatoes and yams.
Dark chocolate, avocados, peanut butter, coconut milk, granola, trail
mixes.
Many of these foods are very nutritious, and sometimes you may need to force yourself to keep eating even if you feel full.
It may be a good idea to skip a ton of vegetables if gaining weight is a priority for you. It just leaves less room for foods high energy.
Eating fruit is good, but try to focus on fruits that don't require too much chewing, like bananas.
5-5) Lift Heavy Weights and Improve Your Strength
In order to get the excess calories going to your muscles instead of just filling your fat cells, then it is absolutely crucial to lift weights.
Go to a gym and lift 2-4 times a week. Lift Weigh Heavy, and try to increase the weight and volume over time.
If you are completely tired or just starting out, consider getting a qualified personal trainer to help you get started.
You can also see a doctor if you have any skeletal issues or any sort of medical problem.
It's probably best to go easy on the cardio for now and focus on the weights primarily. Doing a little cardio is great for improving your physical condition and well-being, but you shouldn't do it in excess or else you will burn all the calories extra you eat.
5-6) Other tips for gaining weight
The combination of high calorie intake with intensive strength training are the two most important factors.
That being said, there are several other things you can do to gain weight even faster. Here are 10 more tips for gaining weight:
Don't drink water before meals. This can fill your stomach and make it harder to get enough calories.
Eat more often. Add an extra meal or snack whenever you can, such as before bed.
Drink milk. Drinking milk to quench your thirst is an easy way to get more high- quality protein and calories.
Try protein shakes. If you are really struggling then you can try the weight gain drinks. These are very high in protein, carbohydrates and calories.
Use larger plates. Certainly, using large plates if you are trying to get more calories instead of smaller plates will lead to you automatically eating more.
Add cream to your coffee. This is a simple way to add more calories.
Take creatine. Building muscle with a creatine supplementmonohydrate can help
you gain a few pounds of muscle weight.
Get a good night's sleep. Sleeping properly is very important for growth muscle.
Eat protein first and vegetables last. If you have a mixture of foods on your plate,
eat foods that are high in calories and high in protein first. Eat the vegetables at
the end.
Do not smoke. Smokers tend to weigh less than non-smokers, and quitting
smoking often leads to weight gain.
II) THE BEST PLANTS FOR GAINING WEIGHT
To gain weight in a healthy way, we must avoid processed foods which, in addition to being high in calories, can cause long-term health problems.
Unlike the majority, many people need to put on a few pounds in a healthy and natural way. Often, these people are uncomfortable with thinness sometimes unpleasant. These days, we hear about weight loss very often in the media. If this is the case and are looking for a natural solution to help with weight gain, we have the solution. This is because many herbs have effects on the
body and can help to increase weight in a natural way.
1) Fenugreek for weight gain
This plant contains properties of female estrogen. In addition, it is ideal for lowering cholesterol and maintaining good glucose levels in the blood. Thanks to its fibers, we also avoid constipation. But then, how to consume it?
You will normally find it in natural products stores. Your doctor may also prescribe it for you in capsule form. You can consume it in different ways:
Through its seeds.
Capsules or tablets that are sold in health food stores.
Through its flour: you can then prepare what is called Egyptian bread.
In powder to season certain preparations.
Tea or infusions.
Without a doubt, the most usual is to take a tea with its seeds as soon as you wake up and
then during the afternoon.
Boil a cup of water. Then add about five seeds, let stand and drink the tea. Throughout the day you should drink enough water. This is what will you
allow to increase your appetite.
Fenugreek has saponins, which help you improve your digestion and
digestive enzymes. The calories that accumulate in your body will therefore do so healthily. But remember, you should always drink at least two liters of water per day.
2) Dandelion to gain weight.
Dandelion acts as a tonic that stimulates the appetite. This is its main faculty. It stimulates the flow of bile thanks to its bitter flavor. This is what improves our digestive enzymes.
For the dandelion to work, we need to take it three times a day, and the first
time should be when we wake up.
Place four flowers of this plant in a cup of boiling water. Let everything rest, then consume the preparation. Half an hour later, you can eat a banana.
Eat a banana every day, as it will also help you gain weight in away healthy.
3) Gentian
Gentian is an excellent plant! It can help us gain weight.
Normally, this is a very effective natural remedy for those who have had a long recovery. These patients normally seek to gain weight quickly and weight healthily, to finally recover their usual. Its properties are based Mainly on stimulating the assimilation of food and helping to open
the appetite. The proteins and calories that we consume can then be synthesized in an ideal way, and they help us to gain weight in a natural way and above all, in a healthy way.
In addition, this plant succeeds in toning the stomach and intestines, which allows to obtain a
more adapted gastric secretion and a better assimilation of the enzymes. You will find gentian in natural products stores, and you can then buy herbal tea bags. It will suffice to drink it after each meal.
4) Little knapweed
The little knapweed (also called “earth gall”) stimulates the gall bladder to fight against gastric disorders. It thus guarantees better assimilation of calories in the body. To use it, you just need to infuse a spoon of dried flowers in a cup of boiling water, to be consumed before meals.
5) Oregano
Oregano, in addition to fighting fatigue and treating rheumatism, is excellent for weight gain. Indeed, its leaves have the property of stimulating the appetite. To enjoy its benefits, it is recommended to sprinkle a spoonful of fresh ororegano dried on your plate. You can also add it to a sauce. You can also add a teaspoon of oregano to a cup of boiling water and drink it twenty to thirty minutes before meals.
6) Absinthe
Absinthe is an excellent solution to fight against the lack of appetite in people who need to gain weight. In order to consume it, add one gram of dried leaves to a cup of boiling water. Let it steep for ten minutes, before drinking it a little before the meal.
Bibliographies
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Alyaa Ghanema Academy - Naturopath
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